2015 NOMA NATIONAL CONFERENCE KEYNOTE SPEAKERS

We are both honored and excited to have them on board as their portfolio of accolades and achievements continues to impress us and most importantly, inspire us. We just can't wait to hear what they have to say and learn from them!They are...

About Maurice Cox

Maurice Cox is a nationally respected architectural educator, community designer and a leader in the public interest design movement. Most recently Cox was appointed to the role of Planning Director for the City of Detroit charged with the responsibility of guiding the urban design and revitalization of one of America’s most significant legacy cities. Cox was the Associate Dean for Community Engagement at the Tulane University School of Architecture in New Orleans and served as the Director of the Tulane City Center. In these roles, Cox oversaw a wide range of community-based initiatives with Tulane architecture faculty and students throughout the City of New Orleans. Cox studied architecture at Cooper Union in New York and has taught architecture at Syracuse University in Florence, Italy and the University of Virginia. A co-founder of the national SEED (Social, Economic, Environmental, Design) Network, Cox served as mayor of the City of Charlottesville, VA from 2002-2004 and served as design director of the National Endowment for the Arts in Washington, DC from 2007-2010. In that capacity, he led the Mayor's Institute on City Design, the Governor's Institute on Community Design, and oversaw the award of more than $2 million a year in NEA design grants across the United States. Professor Cox received the Loeb Fellowship at the Harvard University Graduate School of Design where he was in residence from 2004-2005. In 2013 Cox was named one of the Most Admired Design Educators in America in the annual ranking of Design Intelligence.

As a licensed architect at Bohlin Cywinski Jackson with 21 years of experience in Architecture and Design, Rosa has led a variety of award-winning and internationally acclaimed projects, from the aesthetically minimal, highly technical development of the glass structures for Apple’s original high-profile retail stores, to the innovative and sustainable LEED NC Gold–certified Lorry I. Lokey Graduate School of Business at Mills College in Oakland, California. She is currently working on innovative and sustainable projects for the University of California, Davis and Dominican University of California in San Rafael.

As the Founding Chair of the AIASF Committee: Equity by Design, Rosa lead “The Missing 32% Project,” the 2014 Equity in Architecture Survey and research study, which garnered 2289 respondents and launched a national conversation to promote equitable practice in Architecture. Since the group launched its key findings, Rosa has been presenting them in Boston, New York, and Lisbon, Atlanta, Philadelphia and Seattle. The Equity in Architecture movement has inspired many and created new connections around the world. Most Notably, Rosa was selected to speak at “And Justice for All” at TEDxPhiladelphia 2015 and shared her talk on Equity by Design: Meaning & Influence in Practice.

Rosa also serves as Asst. Treasurer on AIA San Francisco’s Board of Directors, the AIA National Diversity Council, and is a member of SCUP, USGBC, and OWA.

About Equity by Design:

Fueled by the persistent and striking gender inequity within architectural practice, where women compose only 12–18 percent of AIA members, licensed architects, and senior firm leadership, the Missing 32% Project, a committee of AIASF, was developed as a call to action for both women and men to help realize the goal of equitable practice to advance architecture, sustain, and communicate the value of design to society.

Our mission is to understand the pinch points and promote the strategic execution of best practices in the recruitment, retention, and promotion of our profession's best talent at every level of architectural practice.